Light from many lamps week 4
As I have mentioned before, this anthology is a treasure trove of life and leadership lessons. The one I would like to talk about today is by Arnold Bennett, from the book Light from many lamps (Watson, 1951) p.142-147, in the ‘Confidence and achievement’ section. This is about his book ‘How to Live on Twenty-Four Hours a Day’
Arnold Bennett realized very early in in his career that time was his “most precious commodity”. Unfortunately it takes some people most of their lives to appreciate the value of time. We have heard many a complaint about “where is the time?” I admit that I have been guilty of lamenting about the lack of time in my day many a times. What really struck a chord with me was the assertion by Bennett that everyone’s allocation of 24 hours a day “is unstealable”, “there is no punishment” for waste , and that this supply is renewed everyday. I believe in this sense time is a great equalizer; it does not discriminate based on wealth or educational level.
I agree with Bennett that budgeting of time is necessary to be able to maintain work-life balance. Between the demands of work, family, studies and personal well-being, I have a quasi-budgeting approach (with some flexibility for the unexpected). I have realized that the day is a lot less frustrating and chaotic if you adopt this approach. This was reinforced recently during my research for the Critical thinking assignment. In Criticalthinking.org, Paul and Elder (2001) gave a list of 9 strategies to develop in a thinker. One of them is ‘use wasted time’. They say that we all waste time that can be used in more productive ways.
I am inspired to read the above book by Arnold Bennett, to learn tips and strategies on how to manage my 24 hours a day more efficiently.
References
Paul, R. & Elder, L. (2001). Modified from the book by Paul, R. & Elder, L. (2001). Critical Thinking: Tools for Taking Charge of Your Learning and Your Life
http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/critical-thinking-in-everyday-life-9-strategies/512
Watson, L.E. (1951) . Light from Many Lamps. New York: Simon and Schuster.
Simarjit,
I would love to learn more about how you budget your time.
Do you allocate a certain number of hours each day/week to the various elements of your life? Do you schedule certain times of the day for work/learning/family/etc?
— Leadership Prof
Dr Penfold Navaro . I have been a student for as long as I can remember ! I have had other things going on simultaneously , like marriage, kids, work. I have obtained a medical degree and a masters in India. After moving to the US I did residency and fellowship , did 2 board exams. And now I have embarked on this leadership journey . I learned very early on that to be able to do justice to all aspects of my life, I have to be very disciplined with my use of time. I allocate a certain time to each activity in my day, and try to stick to it as much as possible. I have never been a procrastinator , and that really helps . Fortunately, my work is more or less predictable, and I have a VERY supportive family . My younger daughter is 11 yrs old, and the older one is in university. Before starting this leadership course, I sat with my family and discussed the ramifications, and time demands . They were all very supportive . If I am watching TV after dinner, my younger daughter reminds me that I have to study . Having said that , I have to admit it is NOT easy ! But after all these years of practice, I am getting better with my use of time.